Aaron R.
5/5
Very good church -- not too big, not too small. There are several New Life Community Churches throughout Chicagoland: one church, many locations. However, each has its own senior pastor (no video-casts). The churches were started by Mark Jobe, current President of Moody Bible Institute, who is still involved. The pastors of the different locations develop the sermon outlines together, then each pastor adds examples etc. and presents the sermon at their location. NLCC is not affiliated with any denomination, just right down the middle evangelical Christianity. Nothing wacky. I would not have known anything about Dr. Jobe or any of the other locations based on the Sunday services.
Sunday services are 9am and is 10:30 am. After the last service they have light snacks & desserts in the fellowship hall in the basement. The pastor walks around and greets everyone at that time.
They have children's ministries infant through 5th grade and runs in the lower level during the service. Allow 2-3 minutes to check in you children. They give each child a sticker with their name and number, and the parent gets another sticker with the number. (Pretty standard at many churches.) The teen ministry meets every other week on Thursday nights 7pm. My teens really like the youth group and actually want to go each time. (Had not happened anywhere else.)
Each Sunday service starts with live worship music. The singers and instrumentalists sound great and have contagious joy and energy. Most people in the congregation are engaged in the worship, raising their hands at times or clapping. During the sermon, you will hear a few "amens" and people clap at times. Most people are dressed casually - whatever you want to wear. The congregation is multi-racial, all ages, and very friendly. Each time you come there are a few greeters to shake hands and give hugs. No one calls out new people during the service; the pastor asks the congregation to give a round of applause for the new people and visitors as a whole. My first time I felt welcomed and comfortable, not embarrassed. (I dislike when churches tell newcomers to stand up.)
The pastor John Palmieri is solid. He’s a great speaker, passionate and lively, sometimes a little loud to emphasize a point, but not yelling. Sermons are usually in a series over 4-8 weekends. The series are sometimes topical, sometimes verse-by-verse studies. I've found them relevant and engaging. Everything is biblical and squares with what is taught in Bible-teaching churches. Importantly to me, sermons have been neither political nor anti-intellectual. No condemning or ridiculing of other churches or religions.
During the week there are various small groups that meet at the church. I have been a part of a few. There are people who have been at this church for decades (it used to be Elgin Bible Church until they joined NLCC about 5 years ago), and there are new attendees and even some people who do not attend this church. The men's and women's ministries are very established, and there are opportunities to join people from the other New Life churches and retreats or special events. They have a mature and active SoulCare ministry in which many people serve, and they truly help people through life’s great trials.
All around a very solid church with a lot of great people who take their faith seriously. When choosing a church, I recommend going 3-5 times before you look elsewhere.
